serious question, how is looking things up digitally today any different than looking things up in a library as done in the past? Same framework just a more efficient/cost effective delivery method these days

If you went to the library it was to research and learn. If you didnt, you had to go back to the book and look it up again. The point/purpose was to learn the info. With a phone you have millions of books worth of info at your fingertips. The "need" to learn the info is lessened greatly. Human nature is to not put forth effort if the effort is not required.

A good example is the use of calculators. They are a wonderful tool. I use one daily. But it has become a crutch. When I was in school they didnt allow calculators until in advanced classes. The point was to learn the math, then after you have learned it, use it to make life/work easier. Now the calculator is being used without every truly learning the math. So 12yo kids are running around punching numbers in their phones trying to calculate simple math they should be able to do in their head.

I'm not sure of their age, but I spoke with a "Customer Service" representative yesterday with a garage door company. My parent's garage door belt and idler pulley broke and it was under warranty. We received the parts and they were both wrong. It was the wrong pulley and the belt was 2 feet too long. When I called them, she informed me that they only made one pulley. I have her the correct part number and she said they had that one in stock also.
She then informed me that they shipped me a belt for an 8' door. I informed her I measured the door ad it was 96" from top to bottom. She then tells me, "Sir, we only deal in feet, not inches. I need to put you on hold." When she comes back, she informs me that she spoke with her manager and 96" does equal 8'. We agree that they are one and the same. She then asks me to measure the belt. So, I tell her how long it is in feet and she says I need the belt that is 233" which is for a 7' door. I give up.

A good example is the use of calculators. They are a wonderful tool. I use one daily. But it has become a crutch. When I was in school they didnt allow calculators until in advanced classes. The point was to learn the math, then after you have learned it, use it to make life/work easier. Now the calculator is being used without every truly learning the math. So 12yo kids are running around punching numbers in their phones trying to calculate simple math they should be able to do in their head.

spot on. I see this on a daily basis. Kids want to know how many points each question will be worth on a test. I usually tell them the test is worth 100 points and there are x # of questions you tell me how much I should take off. Most of them are unable to do it without there phones. I have also noticed this year that many of them had never used an index before. They are not as much dumb as they are technologically retarded. By that I mean they struggle to do simple tasks without the help of technology.

On a somewhat funny note, I did once have a kid ask if he was in the right classroom. I had called the class U.S. History and his schedule said American History. He was confused. He turned out to be one of my favorite kids. He took me hog hunting several times on his family land.

If you went to the library it was to research and learn. If you didnt, you had to go back to the book and look it up again. The point/purpose was to learn the info. With a phone you have millions of books worth of info at your fingertips. The "need" to learn the info is lessened greatly. Human nature is to not put forth effort if the effort is not required.

but kids today can't use the internet during tests - its the same framework - look up and memorize and then regurgitate for the test

I wonder if when the written word came to be there was a faction of old timers that said "kids these days have it too easy with books and libraries that have too much information in one place and it's too easy to access, in my day you had to find a man who had the knowledge you needed and have him recite it to you"

maybe i have one at least that good. I went to subway with a friend and he ordered a 6 inch sandwich. I was next and i ordered a 12 inch wheat. She said i am sorry, we donít have that. Ok give me the 12 inch white. She said iím sorry we donít have that either.

Ok i asked, what kind of bread do you have? She said all of them. I said iíll take the 12 inch wheat. She said we donít have that........ We only have 6 inch and foot-longís. We do not have 12 inch sandwiches.

My mistakeÖ give me the foot long wheat.

My friend look at me and said, i am just glad that i was here to witness it.

We can grade a paper in class and I can say "each problem is 3 pts. Count the number of wrong answers, multiply by 3 and subtract from 100" I will get all kinds of question but at less 3-4 will be "What is the grade if they missed 3" or 4 or 5 or 6 or 7 or etc.... Simple math and they can not do it.

I like me some sweet tea and buy it by the gallon at the fast food joints like Taco Casa, Chicken Express, Sonic, etc. Problem is, most of their sweet tea is TOO SWEET for me so I ask them to ďcustomĒ mix it. Instead of ďall sweetĒ I prefer about 75% sweet and the rest unsweetened so when ordering I will say ďplease mix it 3 quarters sweet and 1 quarter unsweetĒ.

You simply canít believe the hours and hours of entertainment value Iíve had to endure listening to some of todayís youth mull over the math trying to figure that little equation out! BEYOND COMICAL!!

Itís funny you say that. Because the school system doesnít hardly teach quarts. They want you to find for example 11/72 x 32/1000 divided by 9/2 -3x to the power of 9. Thatís ainít no understatement either. The mathematical part for cashiers I blame the school system. The prissy attitudes I blame the parents

Not sure who you would blame it on. There are six of us kids, all went to same elementary, Jr. High, and high school. Most of us had the same teachers .They are great with math. Raised all the same. And I to this day can not count change back or a lot of simple math with out my fingers or calculator ( failed third grade due to math). Spelling is not so strong either. Some of us just are not as bright as the rest. Frustrates me the most when they want to play cribbage, no way in h!! can I do it.

Maybe I have one at least that good. I went to Subway with a friend and he ordered a 6 inch sandwich. I was next and I ordered a 12 inch wheat. She said I am sorry, we donít have that. OK give me the 12 inch white. She said Iím sorry we donít have that either.

OK I asked, what kind of bread do you have? She said all of them. I said Iíll take the 12 inch wheat. She said we donít have that........ we only have 6 inch and foot-longís. We do not have 12 inch sandwiches.

My mistakeÖ Give me the foot long wheat.

My friend look at me and said, I am just glad that I was here to witness it.

My kids go to school because they have to and for social interaction but i teach them what they really need at home. I work in an extremely technical field and a lot of the younger ones have a B.S. and cant problem solve. if its not memorized and cant look something up they are lost.

I go to order a number 2 at whataburger
me:I would like a number 2 plain and dry with cheese
old guy: what do you not want on it?
me: oh I just want meat and cheese...
old guy: I need to know what you dont want..
me: I dont know what I dont want Ive never ordered a burger with anything more than just meat and cheese how would I know what they put on it!
the rest of the conversation was him asking me from a list of things that could be put on the burger literally took 5 mins

All this digital crap is destroying our youth. I've seen studies that showed modern kids having reduced problem-solving abilities, because they're so dependent on electronic gadgets to do their thinking for them.

Some middle school teachers are reporting seeing kids that can't tell time on a face clock.

Here's a good one for you. A couple of years ago I stopped at a Sonic on the way home from dove hunting. As you know, Sonic has a #1 burger with mustard, and a #2 burger with mayonnaise. I like both on mine. I gave the order over the speaker, "I want a #1, but I want it with mustard AND mayonnaise." He asked me to confirm. I did: "I want a regular hamburger - a #1 or #2 - but I want it with mustard and mayonnaise both."

A few minutes later, this pimple-faced, scrawny kid came out with my burger. It seemed a little flat. I opened it and it was just a piece of meat and.... mustard and mayonnaise. Biting my tongue, I pointed it out to him. He whined, "but that's what you ordered, sir. A hamburger with mustard and mayonnaise."

Schools are institutions of learning.. They do not teach anymore.. Our school systems have been politicized... Try common core math and get back with me..
Ask any senior how many quarts are in a gallon, how many inches are in a foot, how many pints in a quart, how many 8th's of an inch are in a inch.. The list goes on... And these are just the basics.. I learned these in the 4th grade.. It's greak to many seniors these days..

Angleton High school has done away with all vocations. No welding. No wood shop. No auto mechanics.. How in the hail can a school system possibly justify this??????? They can't.. Their answer was "we can't find instructors" bullshat!!!!!!

It's ridiculous.
The public school systems Are broken.. They are a politically driven sad site these days..

Not where I live .
Feds told them to put unisex bathrooms in or they wouldn't get federal money.
They said no and we don't need your money.

Her: What is this?
Me: Its a ham.
Her: I thought ham was sliced.
Me: This is what it looks like before it is sliced.
Her: Does not matter anyway because I don't eat pork.
Me: I'm sorry because bacon is one of the tastiest things on earth.
Her: Bacon is pork?

Not sure who you would blame it on. There are six of us kids, all went to same elementary, Jr. High, and high school. Most of us had the same teachers .They are great with math. Raised all the same. And I to this day can not count change back or a lot of simple math with out my fingers or calculator ( failed third grade due to math). Spelling is not so strong either. Some of us just are not as bright as the rest. Frustrates me the most when they want to play cribbage, no way in h!! can I do it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by bphillips

Funny thing is I run into plenty of people 40+ who are just as stupid. Itís not just kids

Yep, I'm one of them. Critter you're not alone. I cannot add, subtract, multiply or divide. Oh I can do simple,
small numbers in Two's, five's and ten's but that's about it. Numbers just don't work in my head. They get all jumbled up and confusing. Even though there's no real diagnosis for it, I call it numerical dyslexia.
My poor dad spent hours with me going through flash cards and hiring tutors and yet I still failed every math class. It's frustrating when everyone wants to play dominoes and all I can do is watch. My son is a genius, go figure.

Going over my kids review for a test.. found out night before she had test.. teacher emailed this review. This review had 4 problems with missing info or the answer was not one of the 4 choices. 5 grade math and the teacher name was in one of problems that were wrong.. so they took the time to change the names but could prof read the problems?.. emailed her and nothing back.. wow. Comon core....

Schools are institutions of learning.. They do not teach anymore.. Our school systems have been politicized... Try common core math and get back with me..
Ask any senior how many quarts are in a gallon, how many inches are in a foot, how many pints in a quart, how many 8th's of an inch are in a inch.. The list goes on... And these are just the basics.. I learned these in the 4th grade.. It's greak to many seniors these days..

Angleton High school has done away with all vocations. No welding. No wood shop. No auto mechanics.. How in the hail can a school system possibly justify this??????? They can't.. Their answer was "we can't find instructors" bullshat!!!!!!

It's ridiculous.
The public school systems Are broken.. They are a politically driven sad site these days..

Plano Senior High shut down almost all of the trade classes back in the late 70's. They had machine shop, welding, auto paint & body, auto mechanics, home building, printing, a/c, beautician for the girls, etc. It was not due to lack of instructors. It was because that one particular year, there were 0 students that signed up for any of them. It was just about the time computers were getting popular.

Quote:

Originally Posted by miket

As a CNC Programmer/ machinist I personally see the benefits, but also have seen a sharp decline in the knowledge of operators. If something doesnt go just right, call the programmer.......

I have one that ties into the mentally of today's generation.
I have a half brother that is 21 years younger than me. He lives in Wyoming with my folks. He was posting on FB a while back about how walmart doesn't pay enough. I told him to pursue an education and learn a skill set that would earn him the income he wanted. I got deleted from his friends list! Lol
So, I was in Wyoming hunting bear in September and I learned that the Hwy dept was hiring with a starting pay of 21.00 an hour. I asked him why he didn't go get that job. He said "they want you to be there by 7:00 am".
I almost slapped the crap outta him!

I have a 21 year old nephew back in PA who constantly posts on Facebook he needs to make more money. He works at a beer distributor stocking shelves and carrying beer out to cars. Everytime I tell him to either get an education or go to trade school, he gets mad at me. He hasn't removed from his friends list yet but he doesn't like to hear it. He just wants to magically make more money without earning it. I am not bashing young folks, because my brother who is 51, is the same way. He works at a restaurant as a prep cook and constantly complains he doesn't make enough money. They call me a rich snob (I am FAR from rich) and say I don't understand. I started the same place my brother did, of course I understand. I just did something about it.

My point is most of these young people we complain about learned that attitude somewhere, we just don't like to hear it .

Yep, I'm one of them. Critter you're not alone. I cannot add, subtract, multiply or divide. Oh I can do simple,
small numbers in Two's, five's and ten's but that's about it. Numbers just don't work in my head. They get all jumbled up and confusing. Even though there's no real diagnosis for it, I call it numerical dyslexia.
My poor dad spent hours with me going through flash cards and hiring tutors and yet I still failed every math class. It's frustrating when everyone wants to play dominoes and all I can do is watch. My son is a genius, go figure.